Lata Mangeshkar bought diamond ring for self with her 1st pay cheque

Lata Mangeshkar passed away at the age of 92 on February 6. In an interview many years ago, the legendary singer had declared her love for diamonds and how she bought a ring for herself with her first pay cheque. The ring had her initials 'LM'.

Fondly termed as Didi and the Nightingale of India, Lata Mangeshkar ruled a million hearts. Hence, the world was shaken by her death at the age of 92. The legendary singer breathed her last on Sunday, February 6. While she is known for her songs worldwide, not many know about her love for diamonds. Lata Mangeshkar was absolutely enchanted by diamonds since childhood. In an interview many years ago, the singer had revealed how her family couldn't afford them earlier.

Speaking about her love for diamonds, Lata Mangeshkar, in an interview with The Telegraph had said, "I’ve been fond of diamonds from childhood. As a child, my father used to design jewellery. But we couldn’t afford them. He had a keen eye for jewellery and was fond of wearing precious stones. We kids were equally fascinated by jewels. But until I became a professional playback singer, I refused to wear jewellery. I had decided I’d wear only diamonds. With my first income, I bought gold jewellery for my mother. For myself, I got a diamond ring. It was a specially designed diamond and ruby ring with the initials 'LM' in it. I still have that ring. It's one of my most prized possessions."

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Putting her creative talents to the test in 2005, Lata Mangeshkar designed for an Indian diamond export company called Adora. A chance meeting with the company director of the diamond jewellery brand Adora while on a shopping jaunt at the store resulted in a tie-up. Each piece in the Lata Mangeshkar line, specially designed by the singer, carried her laser-imprinted signature. The collection was called Swaranjali and five pieces from this collection were auctioned at Christie's and raked in £ 105,000 (Rs 7,83,903). Being generous as she was, Lata donated the money for the 2005 Kashmir earthquake relief.

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